Tatsuki was the first to stand. He kneeled next to Mocha, his shadow covering the light of the ember. Her face grimaced as she squirmed and whimpered in her sleep, incoherent cries as her neck tossed and turned. It was unsettling to see the normally stoic and reserved woman in distress. Her wailing grew louder and droplets of sweat leaked from her pores.
Mayumi's optimistic expression became solemn.
"Yuki, what should we do? Should we wake her up—"
"Bad idea," Mayumi said strictly.
Yuki set her knees next to Mocha's head and placed a hand on her forehead while Tatsuki was wringing out a wet rag then placed it on her. Yuki gently rubbed the tip of her fingernails against the sides of Mocha's head, scratching a line from her temple, through her hair and to her crown.
"It's ok, you're ok…" Yuki repeated this mantra in the softest voice, like a mother lulling a child to sleep as she rubbed Mocha's head. Flakes of grime appeared on Yuki's fingertips.
"You're safe… Shhh…"
Mocha's breathing began to stabilize. Mayumi was impressed once again. As soon as Yuki stopped speaking, Mocha began to stir. Her eyelids shot open. Before anyone blinked she had rolled Yuki onto her back and straddled her. Mocha's purple fingernails squeezed Yuki's neck, her other thumb pressed on her eyelid.
"Mocha! Stop!" Mayumi yelled.
Mocha froze and recognized where she was. Her vision was dark, like she was looking through a tiny hole from the inside of a dark tunnel. Not only did her body ache, but her mind was throbbing like she had a concussion. Yuki's entire body was clenching tight beneath her; Mocha released her grip on the woman. Yuki coughed erratically. All the children awoke and began crying like an entity disturbed their dreams.
"I… I'm… I'm sorry, Yuki—AH—" Mocha's chest had been torn open. She hissed through her teeth. Her bandage grew a red spot that became bigger and bigger.
Ichigo told the kids to stay near the wall. He helped Yuki up as she was coughing and tried to walk her over to the children, but Yuki shook her head. She took a few deep breaths and walked back to Mocha.
"Are you sure?" Ichigo asked. Yuki nodded her head and gulped, the saliva hurting as it traveled down her throat. Her blue hair was ruffled. In just a moment longer, Mocha could've taken away her eyesight, snapped her neck, tore her throat… Ichigo comforted the children but kept his eyes centered on the situation.
Mayumi sat back down and scratched her head. She wanted to say 'I told you so,' but that wasn't conducive to the situation. She let it go and was simply content that nothing worse happened. Yuki began to unravel the bloody bandages. Mocha saw a purple bruise already forming on Yuki's delicate neck.
"Yuki… Forgive me…" Mocha said, her voice raspy. Yuki flashed an understanding smile and shook her head side to side.
"No, I'm sorry. Mayumi told me not to wake you, but I was arrogant. Gomenasai. My husband… He used to have nightmares too. I got proficient at calming him down. Forgive me, Mocha."
Before Mocha could tell her to stop apologizing, she realized why she said it again—Yuki poured a flask of disinfectant on the reopened wound. Mocha sucked in through her teeth and squeezed her eyes tight. Yuki took the stitching device and dragged the laser over the wound again, using up the last bits of ammo. Yuki wrapped up Mocha with a fresh roll of bandages and instructed her to lay down.
"All better. Take it easy, ok?" Yuki said. Mocha nodded. Yuki comforted the children.
"Mocha, are you hungry?" Tatsuki said. Her eyes shined.
"I'll make you some white rice. It's gonna take about half an hour, ok?" Tatsuki stood up and grabbed the two pound bag of rice and made his way to the kitchen. Ichigo followed him.
The men were gone. It took Yuki a few minutes to lull the children back night-night. Once the kids were asleep, Mocha sat up and looked at Yuki.
"Yuki… Is that whiskey on your breath?"
Yuki turned around and blushed and exhaled on her hand. She only took one shot! Mayumi let out that robust laugh and poured out shots into each glass and passed one to Yuki and Mocha.
"It's good to see you're ok, comrade. All thanks to her. Seriously, you owe her forever now. Cheers to Yuki Kamado!"
Yuki smiled and did not want so much praise, but Mayumi was adamant. Mocha agreed; she was in her debt. They all clinked their glasses together and downed the drinks. Mocha's muscles instantly relieved themselves of tension and her insides became warm.
"Oh, yeah… Let's do it again," Mocha said. Mayumi looked at Yuki with an enticing grin. Yuki shrugged, 'sure, why not'. They poured themselves another shot and took it.
"So, Mocha, ahem, mhhh, aghmm," Mayumi cleared her throat, being overly-dramatic, as usual. Mocha rolled her eyes with a wry scoff.
"Go ahead, say your dumb thing."
Yuki laughed at their banter. They were clearly very close. She sat with them, her blue eyes observant. She was more listening than speaking, like a new friend in the group, letting the two mates show off their camaraderie.
"That boy in there, Tatsuki. He hasn't left your side since you got here."
"Oh? Is there a reason you're telling me this?"
Mayumi looked at Yuki with a mischievous grin, then leaned in close to Mocha and whispered, "I think he likes you."
Mocha raised her eyebrow while the other two giggled and nodded at each other in agreement. Mocha rolled her eyes and demanded another drink. Yuki instructed that it should be her last one for a little bit, at least until her wounds heal further. Yuki filled all the glasses to the brim, spilling some over her fingers as she handed the glasses over.
"Kanpai!"
Tatsuki and Ichigo heard the girls giggling from down the hall. It brought a smile to both of their faces.
"It's nice to hear them having a good time."
"Yeah, it is," Tatsuki replied with a large grin. He was so relieved that Mocha was ok. Ichigo didn't need to help Tatsuki with the rice; it was a simple enough process. He instead grabbed various meats from MRE's and made a stir-fry so everyone could get some protein. He figured Mayumi would be the one most pleased with that.
"Do you know anything about Genesis?" Ichigo asked as he flipped the contents inside the pan with a back and forth motion.
"Hmm… Not really. I've written a lot of pieces about it, but they give me key words like 'terrorists, insurrectionists, savages'. That's all a fabrication. I've only heard rumors about them. I tried to study them but never found anything substantial. I even read the cointel documents, hoping to find a nugget of truth... I never thought they actually lived outside the walls."
"Me either… I hear there are children over there. Women too," Ichigo said with a sly grin. They both laughed and shook their heads. It was just friendly banter, and as men, they knew where each other's hearts were. Apparently the women knew as well… Everyone except Mocha, who was not experienced in such trivial manners.
"I only worry about my children. But doing this? I've never been more excited. And we have a good team. I can just feel it, you know? Better days on the horizon," Ichigo said as the comforting scent of meat and white rice filled the room.
"Same. Omega… It has a way of just draining your soul. I'd rather die than stay another day. Even if we have to live in this bunker for the rest of our lives."
Ichigo irrevocably agreed. Basement dwellers… A much better fate than Omega. They collected bowls and chopsticks and brought the rice pot and stir-fry out to the main room. The scent filled the bunker and woke up the kids from their slumber. I was having a dream about food! They immediately ran to Yuki and Ichigo and raised their voices with glee. White rice with meat poured on top; they even had soy sauce! It was a hearty, familiar meal that filled everyone with joy. They even made a plate for Kage!
After the kids ate, they played with each other and chased Yoshi around the bunker, trying to jump up and grab onto the bot. So many times the bot airlifted the kids to the ceiling. My turn, my turn! The bunker was exceptionally loud and they had no worries. The adults drank a bit too much more than they should, but it was a much needed release as they became familiar with each other.
Mayumi's lips curled into an instigating grin. "Yo, Securi-Team. When you were hovering over Mocha as she slept… What were you writing?"
Tatsuki had been called out. He looked at Mocha but her eyes were narrowed at Mayumi.
"Oh, that… It was nothing…"
"Ah, come hither, comrade! Was it a future video? Journaling? I get it if you don't want to share, but it's not like we're going anywhere. We have to wait for HQ to radio back, and hopefully, princess is healed by then, otherwise we'll be in for a real treat… What do you say?"
"Mayumi, shut it."
"No, it's ok," Tatsuki said. He grabbed his journal from his bag and unwinded the thread covering it. He tilted it toward the campfire so the flame illuminated the pages... Re-reading what he had written down, he began to feel apprehensive. Maybe I shouldn't… How about a previous transmission? Yeah, we can do the one about the grays…
He looked up and saw everyone was attentive. Not only that, but Mocha was listening too, despite her gaze seemingly looking within herself as the flames reflected on her purple eyes. What Tatsuki wanted most was to talk to her. This was his chance. Writing was always the most raw form of self expression for him. In dialogue you can rift and freestyle a bit, but with writing there was deeper self-reflection. In his transmissions there were always things he wrote down that he couldn't bring himself to speak out loud, so it was cut from the script. Thousands of pages had never been witnessed by anyone but him—most times he stuck to relatable topics, current events, strategies for combating Omega propaganda, mind-wars, etc…
"Moon 11, Day 24, Year 33. Hey, what's up guys, Tatsuki here with Securi-Team."
Mayumi let out a cheesy smile of excitement and leaned forward, helping herself to Tatsuki's pack of cigarettes. She lit one and handed it to Tatsuki as he kept reading, then lit another for herself. The introduction Tatsuki spoke was not actually written down; he said it for comedic effect. His nerves relaxed from their reactions and he continued.
"Escape from Omega… A thought the mind has not seen—how could it? Most of us have never stepped outside these black walls, and why should we try? There is nothing out there; only death and dirt, reminding us of our one and only purpose: prolonging our existence.
"Survival… Is that all we are? Food, water, sleep… Get our rocks off in whichever way we like… Repeat? An eternal cycle of dissolution? Labor underneath the sun—some of us under the moonlight…
"I place my hand against these walls, like one day I may feel a heartbeat from the other side, a sign that never comes… What is the point? I retreat to my pod and dream of a new world. What exactly does that look like? I do not know…
"Many nights I feel like the old-world vampires. Perched on the rooftop, filling my lungs with smoke, clouding up the thoughts that I wish would depart from me. Isolation underneath the familiar moon… Hello again, my friend. Nothing has changed. I am still alone."
Mocha's eyes had shifted from the fire… She shifted her gaze toward Tatsuki. Mayumi noticed her comrade's subtlety; it was rare for Mocha to care about any of this 'poetic trash' as she liked to call it, but there she was…
"Sometimes I wander the streets, isolated, yet surrounded by others. We do not exchange a glance. Why do I even come out here? Do I yearn to appear in someone's mind, as if to validate my existence? I cannot make out their faces, but at least there is someone… But what does it matter when they do not feel the same? Is suffering truly just the result of desire? Is it worth it to seek freedom if it hurts this much? Why not sink into my chains… What chains? Everyone is free in Omega… We are happy… Safe…"
Yuki covered her mouth and a stream of tears trailed down her cheeks. Li…
"I longed for something that I had not conceived. Something so outlandish that the mind could not dream. My heart, heavy with sorrow. I thought my eyes were wide open to the truth… Yet I was only squinting at the sunset through my blindfold. Like most of you, I've been living a lie since birth, force-fed rubbish to the point I've acclimated and cannot even taste it anymore. My discernment for good food has been taken away…
"But you, Tatsuki? What do you mean? You're the most awake out of us all! Yesterday I would have hearted your comment, accepted your praise and fed it to my ego. Look! I'm doing something! I'm resisting! But today…. I met…"
Tatsuki stopped at the words. He looked up and saw three faces eager to hear the rest. Mocha's eyes darted back to the fire before Tatsuki noticed her intrigue. Mayumi gave him an encouraging nod. He forced a smile... It was nice to read out loud like this… But this next part? He wasn't sure if he should, or if he had the strength to do so…
"Today… I met a beautiful woman…" He paused again, gulped, and a blush spread across him. Mocha studied his countenance. "A beautiful woman. I had never met someone so… Mesmerizing. Not only did she save me from death, she… set my mind free to the final number. Infinity, she said… I was waiting for the final revolution… Something that cannot exist. Expecting someone to do the rest… How have I been so blind? Sitting in my pod, wasting away, all leading up to this day.
"She offered me to join Genesis. Omega told us that the outside world is dead. But how can I know for certain if I do not see for myself? Is there life beyond the wasteland? I do not know, but I will follow this woman to the ends of the earth to find out. My quest has just begun."
Tatsuki shut his book. "It's not finished, but yeah, that's what I wrote…"
He kept his eyes low. His face was scorching red and not from the fire… His shame was beaten away by the sound of soft clapping. He looked up and everyone was quietly cheering… Except for Mocha. Her eyes had returned to the campfire. Her eyebrows were sharp and her teeth were clenching.
"Now that right there is the type of thing that starts a revolution," Mayumi said. Ichigo and Yuki agreed. Tatsuki never thought of it that way, but she was right. The idea of life outside the walls was met with ridicule even by some of his most loyal viewers. But this exodus? I'll document my journey and share it with the world… My magnum opus. Listen to my story… This… may be our last chance.
He always assumed he was doing his part, but like Mocha said, how much could he really accomplish while still lost in the dark himself? How can the blind man know when his lantern has burned out? How could he save another from drowning if he himself was sinking into the depths?
"I see you gave him the 'biggest number' spiel," Mayumi said to her comrade. Mocha was not in the mood. Mayumi turned to the rest of them and explained, "I can always find her at the cherry blossom tree, either training, meditating, or with her face in a book. You wouldn't think it by looking at her, but she's actually pretty smart."
Mayumi's friendly jabs stirred no reaction from Mocha. She shrugged, "Well, thanks for that, Tatsuki. I look forward to hearing the finished product."
Ichigo and Yuki also praised him for the work. His words ignited their own desires to be free. Their dedication to the exodus was galvanized.
"Thanks, everyone…"
As the night winded down, Mayumi made herself a nest and laid back. The children were restless and approached the campfire. Yuki and Ichigo answered their questions about 'where are we going', 'am I going to school tomorrow', etc. etc.
"Come on, let's get you back to sleep," Yuki said. She pulled out a children's book and read them to sleep, passing the book to Ichigo every other page. Now it was just Mocha and Tatsuki at the fire… One could squeeze their fist and grab hold of the tension in the air.